Sabbats Almanac: Samhain to Mabon - Kristoffer Hughes 2018
Feasts and Treats by Blake Octavian Blair
Lammas
THE FIRST HARVEST IS upon us! The season of the corn harvest, celebrations of the Great Mother in her form as the Corn Mother, and some of the hottest days of the year are likely upon us as well. The aim of this menu, like many summer menus, is to provide a zesty and refreshing line up of flavors that will not only satisfy your diners but also honor the first harvest. I have aimed to include dishes that feature ways to honor grains in ways that are in my experience often overlooked at many Lammas celebrations. Honor the season in its fullest and decorate your feasting table with some Indian corn, wheat stalks, and an image of the Great Mother in a form that speaks to you!
Bean Salad Salsa
For many of us, the August heat can be just brutal. A nice cool snack that is fast and easy to prepare and doesn’t require any hot pans or ovens is always appreciated. This super easy, cold creation fits the bill! Serve it as a cold salsa for dipping tortilla chips, serve it as a cold salad before your main meal or as a side dish. It’s sure to please and it coordinates well with the other treats present in this line up of Lammas delights!
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes refrigeration
Serves: 5—10 (depending on portions)
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes with green chilies, drained
2 11-ounce cans Mexican corn, drained
1 15.5-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
⅓ of a medium sweet onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp lime juice
1½ tsp chili powder
Begin by chopping the onion and placing in a bowl. Add lime juice and allow to sit for 5 minutes. The lime juice really is essential, do not omit it. It acts to eliminate any over-powering “raw onion” taste, balances the heat and adds the perfect amount of acidity. It marries into and brings out the flavors of the ingredients really well as the dish sits.
Meanwhile, open and drain canned goods as directed in ingredients list and then combine into a large bowl.
Now add chili powder and mix well. You can adjust the quantities of the lime juice and chili powder according to your taste preferences. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes to chill.
Serve as a cool and refreshing side salad or it is also delightful with corn tortilla chips as a salsa. Optionally, if you’re feeling fancy, slightly warm/bake the corn chips.
Summery Fish Tacos
These tacos, dressed with a homemade slaw, make a nice refreshing summer dish that provides a fun way to incorporate honoring the grain harvest through the use of a bread often overlooked during this celebration … tortillas! These tacos have a flavor that is both fresh and bold simultaneously, and they are an entrée that sits light with your diners yet are satisfyingly filling. Since this recipe has a few different components to be made, I’ll walk you through step by step. No worries though, it’s all super simple!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15—20 minutes
Serves: 2—3
For the Slaw:
9 ounces shredded cabbage slaw
½ cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
½ tsp powder cayenne pepper (to taste)
Cracked black pepper to taste
If your cabbage is not already shredded into slaw, begin by chopping it to your desired consistency to create the slaw. Place the cabbage into a large mixing bowl.
Add the mayonnaise, stirring to combine well and coat the cabbage. Then add the lime juice and apple cider vinegar. Mix well. Now add cayenne pepper and black pepper. Continue to mix. When all ingredients appear well combined, give it a taste test. You can adjust the heat and acidity to your liking by adjusting the cayenne, black pepper, and lime juice to your taste.
Refrigerate until use.
Fish Preparation:
3 tbsp canola or olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1½ tsp curry powder
1½ tsp chili powder
8 medium size flour or corn tortillas
14 ounces tilapia fillets
To create a seasoning for the fish filets, in a small bowl mix the ground cumin, curry powder, and chili powder. Set aside.
Now, if you are comfortable doing so, you can prepare the tortillas parallel to cooking the tilapia fillets. If you feel your cooking management would be better not doing so, go ahead and prepare the tortillas now prior to moving on to cooking the fish.
Preheat a skillet or griddle on medium low heat. Proceed to warm the tortillas on the griddle until they achieve a bubbly texture from the air pockets and begin to get a slight bit of brown toasting. As they finish warming, place warmed tortillas under a clean kitchen towel on a plate to keep warm until all tortillas are ready or it is serving time.
Add canola oil to a large skillet and preheat on medium heat. Add tilapia fillets, carefully, to the preheated skillet. Sprinkle top of each filet with desired amount of the spice mixture that you created earlier. Cover and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Then, flip filets, sprinkle with seasoning, cover, and cook an additional 3 to 4 minutes.
When finished cooking, remove tilapia fillets from the pan, place in a medium size bowl, and use a fork to flake apart the fillets.
Distribute the fish evenly into each of the warmed tortillas. Top with the slaw, and serve!
Note: Cooking times for fish can vary depending on how hot an individual stove runs, material of skillet, the thickness of the filets, and other variables. Your cooking time may run a couple minutes shorter or longer. Keep an eye on it to achieve the proper level of doneness.
Fresh Jalapeño Cornbread
Many traditions celebrate the harvest of corn at Lammas time, and yet, Lammas menus often seem devoid of this wonderful grain! Having grown up in the Midwest, I simply couldn’t resist sharing a delicious corn based recipe to integrate into your Lammas festivities. Of course, this isn’t any old pedestrian cornbread; fresh jalapeños bring brightness to the savory sweetness of the cornbread. Not too spicy, but with a little kick to add just the right amount of dimension! Serve with your feast dinner and even as ritual cakes!
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Serves: 8—10
2 small jalapeño peppers, seeded and diced
1 tsp flour (for the jalapeños)
4 tbsp butter
1½ cups cornmeal
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1½ tsp baking powder
½ cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup milk, more if needed
Begin by removing the seeds of and chopping the jalapeño peppers. Next, in a small bowl, mix the jalapeños and flour and set aside.
Now add butter into a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or in a 9-inch square baking pan. Place pan into the oven and preheat the oven (skillet inside) to 350 degrees F.
Note: Cast iron is quite traditional for cornbread. However, if you do not have a cast iron pan, use a 9 × 9 baking dish.
Now, in a large mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, salt, and baking powder. In a separate small bowl, combine the sugar, eggs, and milk, and mix to combine. Then add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients. Integrate until you achieve an even texture using as few strokes as possible. If the mixture seems dry, add additional milk as desired. Up to 6 tablespoons may be required.
Now stir in jalapeños, again, with only the number of strokes required to evenly integrate them into the mixture.
When the oven is preheated and the buttered skillet is hot, carefully remove the skillet from the oven, add the batter CAREFULLY and smooth the top using a heat-resistant utensil such as a silicone spatula. Return skillet to oven. Bake about 35—40 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned and the sides have pulled away from edge. You can test the doneness by sticking a toothpick into the center. When done, the toothpick will come out clean.
This corn bread is a delicious side or even as a desert. Further, it’s perfect for use in a cakes and ale ceremony during your sabbat ritual! While it tastes good at room temperature, this cornbread is absolutely delightful served warm and lightly buttered.